Photo: Monique Tamminga

The sun was shining, the music was pumping and the floaties were floating down the Penticton channel for the inaugural South Okanagan Similkameen (SOS) Pride Fruit Float held on Sunday.

The first Pride Fruit Float was a colourful and wonderful finale to a month of events put on the by SOS Pride.

More than two dozen members of the SOS Pride gathered at the Penticton channel at Coyote Cruises to float down the channel on Sunday.

“The Fruit Float is totally unique to Penticton. This is the first year we’ve done this so we had no expectations on how many would show up,” said SOS Pride president Karen Davy, who organized the float.

“This is a perfect day for a float down the channel and a perfect way to close out pride month,” Davy said on Sunday.

Those who took part in the Fruit Float came armed with water guns, colourful beach attire, sunscreen and plenty of smiles. SOS Pride had a tent set up at the floatie launch area where bubbles were available along with information about SOS Pride.

June is Pride month and this year is the first time the SOS Pride decided to hold events all month long.

“This is the first year we’ve held events every weekend and it’s been great. We are really going to build on this for next year,” said Davy.

To kick off pride month, SOS Pride held a Diva Dance Party at the Jim Pattison Center for Excellence at Okanagan College Penticton. Impressionists like Tina Turner, Lady Gaga and Dolly Parton packed the dance floor for this awesome party.

Penticton Secondary students hosted a Love Has No Labels week at their school, handing out buttons to students. The Diversity Club at Pen High went around to businesses in the community who embrace and support the LGBTQ+ community and gave them decals.

The SOS Pride board’s youth director is a Penticton Secondary student, said Davy.

On June 10, Penticton Mayor John Vassilaki officially declared Pride Week from June 10 to 14.

SOS Pride also held a Pride Talk at the Community Centre that was really well attended, said Davy.

“It was a panel of speakers talking about their journey as well as a time for questions and answers. There were tears and laughter,” she said. “It was a really moving event.”

The SOS Pride hosted a fun picnic in the park as well.

On Friday night, Bench 1775 Winery invited members of the SOS Pride community to a ‘silent disco’ where you dance to songs playing through headphones.

“It was a really unique and fun time,” said Davy. “Each person wears headphones that have two channels playing the same song. We even had some of our members dress up, one group as the Village People.”

The finale to Pride month was the Fruit Float, which Davy said was a total success.

The hope is to one day not have a need for a pride month to exist, “because then we will live in a fully inclusive world,” said Davy.

The SOS Pride hopes that being around in the community and hosting these activities throughout the month will create a better awareness and acceptance of everyone.

“We are all human,” Davy stresses.

“Everybody has the right to be who they are. It’s important to create a safe space to be who they want to be.”

Photo: Monique Tamminga